Top Midday Stories: Alphabet Upsizes Equity Capital Raise to $84.75 Billion; SpaceX Planning $135 a Share IPO
All three major US stock indexes were down late-morning Wednesday, as oil prices and US Treasury yields rose amid concerns about the ongoing conflict between the US and Iran.In company news, Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) upsized its equity capital raise to $84.75 billion from the previously announced $80 billion, according to a regulatory filing Tuesday. The offering includes a pledge by Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B) to invest $10 billion in a private placement, the filing said. Alphabet's Class C and Class A shares were each down about 0.8%. Berkshire's Class A and Class B shares were up 0.3% and 0.5%, respectively.SpaceX plans to price its initial public offering at $135 per share, seeking to raise $75 billion, Reuters reported late Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The firm plans to sell 555.6 million shares in an all-primary offering and is aiming for a $1.75 trillion valuation, the report said. Separately, 10 officials in the Trump administration reported financial interests in SpaceX and xAI worth at least $9.9 million and as much as $43.8 million, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing recent public financial disclosures.Hartford Insurance Group (HIG) has agreed to sell its Hartford Funds unit to Wellington Management in a deal with a net present value of $1.9 billion, the companies said Wednesday. Hartford will receive $300 million in cash at closing, with additional payments over seven years tied to cash generated by the combined business and related product sales, the companies said. Hartford shares were down 0.5%.Medtronic (MDT) reported fiscal Q4 adjusted earnings Wednesday of $1.55 per diluted share, down from $1.62 a year earlier but above the FactSet consensus analyst estimate of $1.54. Fiscal Q4 revenue was $9.81 billion, up from $8.93 billion a year ago and above the consensus of $9.62 billion. For fiscal 2027, the company expects adjusted EPS of $5.90 to $6.00 on organic revenue growth of 6.75% to 7.25%. Analysts polled by FactSet expect adjusted EPS of $6.05. Medtronic said it is investing in two privately held intracardiac echocardiography catheter companies. Financial details of the investments were not disclosed. Medtronic shares were up 4.6%.Palo Alto Networks (PANW) reported fiscal Q3 adjusted earnings late Tuesday of $0.85 per diluted share, up from $0.80 a year earlier and above the FactSet consensus of $0.79. Fiscal Q3 revenue was $3 billion, up from $2.29 billion a year ago and above the consensus of $2.94 billion. For fiscal Q4, the company said it expects adjusted EPS of $0.96 to $0.98 on revenue of $3.35 billion to $3.36 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet expect $0.94 and $3.28 billion, respectively. Palo Alto Networks shares were down 4.3%.Price: $355.43, Change: $-2.96, Percent Change: -0.83%
